Toyota has not provided a notification schedule in the required NHTSA satiety defect filing.
Toyota Motor Sales is conducting a safety recall involving 342,000 Toyota Tacoma Access Cab vehicles produced from 2004 to 2011 because of defective seat belts. The screws attaching the belt pre-tensioner to the retractor within the seat belt assembly for the driver and front passenger can become loose because of access door closings. If the screws loosen completely, the belt pre-tensioner and the retractor spring cover could break, which hurts safety belt performance.
Toyota along with Ford Motor Company has the dubious distinction of paying record fines to NHTSA because of cover-ups of known safety defects. The brief Toyota statement does not provide accident or fatality details or any information on how the safety defect came to be known. (Ford to Pay Record $17.35 Million NHTSA Fine on Recall)
In its required NHTSA filing, Toyota said it investigated impact force to the seat belt assembly generated by closing the access door in the Access Cab model, and compared it to the impact forces coming from door closing on Regular Cab (2-door) and Double Cab (4-door) models. Toyota said that the seat belt assembly mounted inside the door for the Access Cab Tacoma receives higher impact forces when the access door is closed compared to the other cab types where the seat belt assembly is mounted inside the B-pillar.
Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the seat belt assemblies. Based on the inspection, the seat belt assembly will be replaced or new pre-tensioner screws installed with thread-locking sealant and a retractor spring cover with “stopper ribs” to prevent loosening of the screws.
These safety services will be provided at no cost to the owner as is required by U.S. regulations. Toyota has not provided a notification schedule in the required NHTSA filing. Owners of vehicles subject to this recall will receive a notification by first class mail. Detailed information is also available to customers at www.toyota.com/recall and at the Toyota Customer Experience Center at 1-800-331-4331.
Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 or go to www.safercar.gov.
